Accidentally Found
by Fluro-Highlighter
Summary: What if something else mysterious happened at the Quidditch World Cup leading to another person at the graveyard? Is this new character a friend or foe? Better than it sounds. ON HOLD
1. Chapter 1

_(This is just after Harry, Hermione and the Weasley's arrive at the Quidditch World Cup and are looking for their tent in GoF)._

As they began to walk off in the direction the map pointed them in, a small group of teenagers walked past them laughing and mucking around. Harry noticed instantly that they had accents but he couldn't quite guess where they were from by their muffled giggling.

"Do people come from all over the world to watch, even if their country doesn't compete?" Harry asked as they squeezed past each other, as there was limited space in the over-crowded camping grounds.

"Oh yes. People from absolutely _everywhere_ come to watch. I think everyone just loves the excuse to all meet up together," Mr. Weasley answered. "And show-off," he added as they past several tents that had obviously had magic modify them in some way as some had chimneys, added gardens and – to Harry's astonishment – several floors.

At that moment one of the passing teenagers wasn't looking where they were going and got their foot caught around a tent peg and its rope. She stumbled and in her panic grabbed hold of the closest person who happened to be Ron. He turned around suddenly at the unexpected touch and caused them both to unbalance and fall to the ground in a crumpled heap. Ron landed with a grunt and the girl burst into a fit of giggles before they tried to detangle themselves.

"Ouch," Ron groaned.

"I'm so sorry. I'm such a klutz; I fall over everything. I don't even know what I feel over then, it's usually my feet," the girl apologised between her giggles.

Harry instantly recognised her accent as Australian. Her friends sounded like they were too; Harry could hear them laughing just as hard behind them, offering no help. This was clearly too funny for them to interrupt.

"No harm done," Ron replied as he hauled himself back up to his feet.

Harry offered the girl his hand and helped her up.

"Thanks," she said taking his hand.

As she stood up she started brushing the leaves off the back of her coat. When she was standing Harry could see what see looked like more clearly. She was around their age, maybe a little older, slightly short and slightly curvy but wearing clothes that complemented her figure to its best; snug flared jeans and tight fitted singlet top with a shirt over the top worn open, just under her coat. She had short brown hair that wasn't quite long enough to all fit into her messy ponytail, so most of it fell nicely around her face. But it was her eyes that caught Harry's attention; they were like nothing Harry had ever seen. They were grey that gradually darkened until they were black around the edge of the iris. They were surrounded by a thick layer of black make-up that brought out the strange colouring more.

Harry watched as these eyes slowly looked up at his face then suddenly stopped at his forehead. He wanted to groan and hide his face as he saw her eyes bulge.

"Oh. My. God!" she gasped, making the words spread out over three separate sentences. "You're him! You're Harry Potter!"

Harry tried to give her a half-hearted laugh but it sounded more like a cough.

"Oh, I'm sorry, you must get so sick of people gawking at you all the time. It's just at the back of my mind I thought I might see you while I was over here, but I never thought I _actually_ would see you!" she babbled at top speed. What she said made no sense to Harry but he could hear the twins trying to hide their laughter behind him.

"C'mon, Elle! Stop pestering the innocent. They've done nothing to deserve this punishment of your endless babble," one of her friends called.

She blushed. "Sorry, again," she said to both Harry and Ron before she ran back to her friends.

"Do you always have that affect on girls, Ron?" Fred laughed.

"Shut up!" Ron snapped back at him.

The twins continued to laugh even harder as Ron's face turned red.

_(When Harry, Ron and Hermione are walking from the water tap, back to the tent)._

As they walked they saw many Hogwarts students, each one just as excited as Harry, Ron and Hermione were to be there. Harry suddenly caught a glimpse of Cedric Diggory standing with a group of his Hufflepuff friends, as well as some other kids he didn't recognise. Harry couldn't help not noticing that it was mostly girls that made up most of the small group, each one looking at Cedric with clear interest. One of them seemed to have gotten his attention as they stood close together, arms touching. He was leaning down over her, always looking at her face. The other girls were glowering at her with jealousy. As they got closer Harry suddenly recognised the girl at Cedric's side. It was the girl that fell onto Ron, Elle; he remembered her friends had called her.

Ron obviously noticed her too. He glared at both of them.

"Oh Ron, it was an accident, she did apologise for it. And as for Cedric, when will you get over the fact that Gryffindor lost a Quidditch match. It's not the end of the world," Hermione said looking at Ron's sour face.

"That has nothing to do with it, Hermione. And she's just plain weird," Ron answered back.

"And this has nothing to do with Fred and George's taunts?" Hermione noticed that Ron didn't have a problem with her before.

"No!" he snapped. "Like I said, she's just weird."

Hermione rolled her eyes not wanting to continue the argument.

Cedric looked up, taking his eyes from Elle's, and smiled and waved as they walked past. Harry and Hermione returned the wave while Ron pretended he didn't see them. The girl called Elle looked up to their direction then quickly looked down at her feet blushing again, still embarrassed about what happened before. Noticing her sudden embarrassment, Cedric looked down at her again, asking her what was wrong. Her face became more flushed as he spoke to her.

Harry couldn't ignore the sudden pang of jealousy he felt at the amount of female attention Cedric was receiving. He had always been very popular with girls at Hogwarts with his kind nature and handsome face; it wasn't uncommon to see girls blush when he spoke to them.

_(Just after the Death Eater's arrive at the Quidditch World Cup, before the Dark Mark appears)._

They kept on running in the same direction of the crowd. Harry noticed several people staying back trying to save their tents, packing everything at top speed, but fear made them clumsy.

"Why would you? It's just stuff, it can be replaced," Harry heard Hermione mutter behind him. In his mind, Harry agreed with her.

The screaming continued as they ran further into the trees. It was getting much darker and Harry could barely see much in front of him.

Suddenly one scream seemed to be much closer than all the others. Harry's eyes squinted as he tried to see where it was coming from. To the right of them he could just make out the outline of a girl being dragged along, kicking frantically trying to get away.

As they got closer he realised it was the same girl they had met earlier, Elle. She was being pulled back as if someone had their arm around her neck in a chokehold, but Harry couldn't see the person dragging her. It was so dark he couldn't even see the arm that was pulling her back.

"Should we help her?" he asked Ron and Hermione.

"Umm..." Hermione said looking around the crowd. Nobody else seemed to have noticed.

"Help me! Somebody please!" her screams continued. "Let go of me!" Her arms flew around trying to push off the hidden attacker; it didn't seem to make much of a difference.

"C'mon," Harry said making up his mind, pulling the others towards her.

But the crowd was getting bigger and they were being pushed further away from her. Harry tried to push past them but it soon became impossible. He could see more flashes of light from spells coming from behind the crowd; they were getting closer. Everyone was panicking and only concentrating on getting themselves as far away from danger as possible, completely ignoring Harry's attempts to squeeze past them.

"Harry!" he heard Hermione call. He turned to see that they had gotten separated; the bodies crammed against him were pushing him still. He let the crowd push him back then managed to squeeze himself back to them.

"I couldn't get through," he yelled over the crowd frantically.

"Well we tried. You can't always be the hero, Harry. We've got to keep ourselves safe too," Hermione said. Harry wanted to snap something back at her but she continued to talk getting more frantic. "Oh, where are Ginny and the twins? I haven't seen them," she said anxiously, pulling at Harry's arm.

Harry looked over his shoulder one last time. He couldn't see Elle anywhere. Maybe someone else had helped her. Maybe...


	2. Chapter 2

_(This is just after Harry and Cedric arrive at the graveyard by portkey)._

"Someone's coming," Cedric said suddenly.

Harry's eyes squinted trying to get a better look. He then realised that there was two of them. One of them was short and rounded wearing a big, black cloak and hood that hid his face. He was carrying something in his arms but it too was wrapped in robes so Harry couldn't see what it was.

The second person was female. She was slightly taller than the first figure but still quite short and extremely thin, half-starved from the look of her. Her clothes were ripped and tatty; they didn't fit her well at all, hanging from her skinny body. She had no hood on so as they got closer Harry could see her face.

He gasped. It was the same girl from the Quidditch World Cup, Elle. What had happened to her? He realised she was wearing the same clothes she wore that day. It showed how much weight she had lost. He remembered how well she had filled these clothes. Did she ever eat? A piece of rope was all that was holding her jeans up, her shirt was hanging from one bony shoulder and her singlet underneath no longer stretched over her once healthy body. The memory of seeing her being dragged off into the woods flashed into Harry's head. Was that the last time anyone had seen her? Guilt washed over him as he wished he had tried harder to save her.

Elle recognised them both at the same time Cedric recognised her.

"Elle?" he whispered, also remembering her.

Her face was so pale and lifeless when she looked up at both of them. She quickly realised why they were here when she yelled, "Get out of here! Run!"

The hooded person next to her suddenly turned at her outburst and struck her across the face so she fell to the ground. Harry could then see that her hands were bound.

Cedric raised his wand. "What's going on here?" He demanded trying to sound intimidating.

The cloaked figure turned slowly to face them both.

Harry's scar suddenly seared with pain. He had never felt pain so strong in his life, ever. He gasped, dropping his wand and clamped his hands over his forehead. His legs gave out from beneath him and he fell to his knees, the pain never stopping. He cried out loud.

Cedric looked down at him shocked. Harry could see panic and confusion flash across his face.

"Run!" Harry gasped at him, but it was no use.

A high, cold voice rasped, "Kill the spare."

"No!" Elle screamed.

But a swishing sound and the hooded man screeching the words, "Avada Kedavra", muffled her yell.

Elle let out a blood-churning scream at the same time there was a blast of green light that lit up the whole graveyard, and then Harry heard something hit the ground, hard. It was silent for a moment and his scar seemed to be getting more and more painful.

Harry opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Cedric laying flat on his back, eyes open and unfocused staring up at nothing. He was dead.

The seconds seemed to drag on forever as Harry stared at Cedric's pale dead face. He could still hear Elle somewhere behind him, gasping for air, sobbing.

"Get up!" A voice growled.

Harry turned to see the hooded person dragging Elle back up to her feet; her lip was bleeding from where he had struck her. She tried to fight him off, but her tiny, frail body was no match to his bigger build, even as he carried the mysterious object wrapped in robes.

"Go see if he's dead!" he barked at her.

"What?!" she gasped.

"Go!"

"But you know he's dead," she whispered.

"Yes, but you seem to know him, so go check for yourself," he replied leaning towards her, wand in his free hand threatening.

He flicked his wand and the ropes around her wrists vanished. She softly touched where the rope had rubbed her skin raw. Harry could see tears welling up in her eyes as she slowly made her way over to Cedric's body. Her whole body was trembling with fear.

"Accio wands!" The man called. Harry watched as his wand flew from the ground – he hadn't picked it up yet – with Cedric's, which flew to the man's outstretched hand. It was then that Harry realised; the man was Wormtail.

Hatred filled Harry's body. This was the man responsible for his parents' death. And now he stood before him without a care in the world about what he had just done. Harry wanted to leap up, to attack him, to hurt him, to get revenge, but the pain from his scar was so strong it paralysed his body leaving him unable to do anything but watch.

Elle stood next to Cedric's body and slowly sank down to her knees. She leaned down and gently placed two fingers on his pulse point at his neck. Of course, she never found a pulse.

"He's dead," she whispered as the tears spilt from her eyes and ran down her dirty cheeks, leaving trails as they washed the filth away.

Wormtail grinned widely. The pain on her face seemed to please him.

_That's sick! _Harry thought to himself. Wormtail always only ever thought of himself, and he had done many shocking things in his life, but torturing a young girl mentally was a new low, even for him.

Harry watched as Elle stared at Cedric's once handsome face, brushing his hair away from his eyes gently with her fingertips. Her other hand was clutching his, still shaking, and Harry remembered briefly the attraction they had for each other at the Quidditch World Cup.

Now that she was closer, Harry could see more clearly how badly she looked. The cut on her lip was pulsing out blood, but from the look of her that was nothing to what she had already suffered. Her bare arms were covered with old cuts, bruises and many scars. Some looked really nasty and Harry couldn't even imagine what pain she must have had to put up with.

Her hair was a big knot mass that was pulled out of her face with an old rubber band. And her eyes... Harry remembered when he had thought they were so beautiful, not a colour but something so different and full of life. They had almost been silver they were so bright. Now they were nothing more than a dull shade that looked like they would never shine again.

_(This is when Harry and Voldermort are dueling and Harry sees his parents)._

"Harry," his mother whispered, her voice so soft and sweet. "Take the girl; help give her back the freedom that was taken from her."

Harry's eyes flickered to where Elle sat, still clutching Cedric's hand. He had almost forgotten she was there, only ever hearing the occasional sob that she could no longer contain behind her pale lips.

"Harry," it was Cedric's voice now. "Take my body back with you. Take my body back to my parents..."

"I will," Harry gasped, answering both questions, glancing over again to Cedric's body with Elle right next to it. At least they were close together; he wouldn't have to run to get her to the body, wasting time they had little of.

"Do it now," Harry's father whispered urgently. "Be ready to run... Do it now!"

Harry cried out loud as he jerked his wand upwards, the connection breaking as he did so. He didn't see what happened after that, he was running, his legs pumping as he charged straight towards Elle and Cedric's body. Each step was agony as he tried to ignore the pain from his leg. He could hear Death Eater's running after him yelling spells as they went, he could see the flashes of the spells missing him by inches, smashing gravestones. He could feel some of the shards ricochet off his body as he ran past. But he kept going.

He could see Elle's shocked face more clearly. He was almost there; he reached his arm out to her. Although still shocked and traumatised she reached for him too. His hand grasped hers before he turned to the portkey Cup. "Accio Cup!" he yelled.

His eyes searched back to where he had just run from, looking for his parents. He wanted to see them, one last time... But they were gone. He didn't have time to feel sorrow as the Cup flew to his right hand, his left hand still grasping Elle's, her other hand holding Cedric's.

The last thing Harry heard was Voldermort's screams of rage.

And then they were spinning. Harry squeezed his eyes as tightly shut as they would go. He heard Elle gasp and felt her clutching his hand more tightly. If she wasn't so frail and weak it probably would have caused Harry more pain, but she wasn't that strong so he barely noticed. His mind was somewhere else though. He had seen his parents, he spoke to them, and he wanted to again. Somehow...

Harry felt his body slam into the ground. He heard Elle's soft grunt as she fell next to him still clutching his hand. There was no sound from the body that fell next to her. There never would be again. He tried to sit up. They were all on top of each other, tangled. He clung to Cedric's arm, a sob escaped from his chest. He couldn't hold them back; he had had too much to deal with in the short amount of time, another sob followed.

Then he heard it. His name being yelled by many different people, footsteps all running in their direction, the babbling of people asking hundreds of questions, he couldn't block them out.

"What happened?"

"What's wrong with him?"

"Who's that?"

"Is that supposed to be part of it?"

It was only then that Harry was aware that Elle had finally let go of Cedric and was sitting, hiding, behind him, afraid of the huge crowd of people rushing over. Dazed, Harry looked around. He could see hundreds of sets of eyes all staring at him, all of them utterly baffled, not understanding what just happened. His eyes searched for Ron and Hermione in the crowd but he couldn't find them.

"Harry!" One urgent voice stood out from the rest; Dumbledore's. His hands reached Harry first and pulled him so he was facing his headmaster. Dumbledore's eyes were not glistening as they usually did. They were full of fear and confusion.

"He's back!" he finally managed to choke out. "Voldermort's back!" Dumbledore's eyes flashed. Harry couldn't work out what sort of expression was painted on the old man's face, but it scared him.

The voices around them seemed to be getting louder. Harry closed his eyes and tried to block them out again, but it didn't seem to help, if anything, they got louder.

"Cedric!"

"Is he...?"

"What?"

"He's dead!"

He was vaguely aware of other people talking to him, asking questions, trying to calm him down. He could feel someone pulling at his hands, trying to pry them from Cedric's body, which he was still clinging to, refusing to let go.

His shoulder was aching it felt bruised. The pain seemed to get worse; then he realised it was Elle's hand gripping it, terrified. She was still hiding behind him. Harry could hear people talking to her, yelling at her.

"Was it you? Did you kill him?! One voice demanded, louder than the others.

"N-n-no! I wasn't... I didn't... I-" she stammered.

Suddenly a pair of hands was more forceful at pulling Harry's hands.

"Harry," Dumbledore whispered.

"He wanted me to bring his body back. He wanted me to bring him back to his parents," Harry croaked, still refusing to let go.

"Yes, okay, alright. You did the right thing. You're both home and you're safe. You can let go now..." Dumbledore's word's soothed.

Harry's hands slowly loosened as he leant away from Cedric's body, he could feel Elle behind him as she clung closer to him. He could feel her trembling.

"Who's this?" Dumbledore asked Harry calmly as he looked at Elle, confused by her beaten and terrified state.

"They had her. They took her at the World Cup, I couldn't leave her..." Harry answered. He knew he wasn't making any sense but Dumbledore seemed to understand. Elle remained silent behind him, too afraid to speak.

The murmuring continued and Harry recognised one of the voices belonged to Cornelius Fudge, but all the rest just seemed fuzzy.

"We should move the body, get Potter to the Hospital Wing," he could hear Fudge whispered to Dumbledore.

The muttering continued, the voices still unrecognisable.

"Diggory's parents?"

"They're in the stands."

"What about Potter and the girl? He's injured and she looks terribly ill."

"Who is she?"

Harry then felt someone pulling at him, "C'mon son, let's get you out of here."

"No–" Harry tried to protest.

"You look like hell," the voice growled in his ear. "Up you get."

Harry was then pulled to his feet. His leg was still throbbing, his scar burning; he could barely stand, but the person pulling him supported most of his weight, half carrying him.

He felt Elle's hands being pulled off him, a bit too forcefully Harry thought, but he could still hear her sobs as they were dragged away from the maze together. Wherever they were going he wasn't going to leave her. He was the only one that knew the truth and – from what he had heard – people were blaming her for what had happened to Cedric.

He could still feel the many sets of eyes watching them being pulled away from the scene; everyone still unknown to the fact that Voldermort was back.

Harry felt relieved at being taken back to the castle, away from everyone's judgmental eyes. He still didn't know who was dragging him along until they got to the stone steps. _Clunk. Clunk. Clunk._ It was Mad-Eye Moody.

"What happened, Potter?" he asked as they walked through the castle.

Harry explained everything that happened as best he could. The pain in his scar made it hard for him to concentrate. He just wanted to shut down, to forget everything that had happened this night. Well almost everything, the image of his parents flowed back into his mind.

Moody's office door opened and he lead them both inside. Harry stood there numbly staring off into nowhere. BANG! Harry jumped. He heard Elle gasp, as she was startled as well. Moody walked away from the door that he had just locked loudly with a strange look on his face. Harry began to feel a bit uneasy. Something wasn't right.

_(Carries on as it does in the book, except with Elle hiding behind Harry)_

_Hope you're enjoying it! Forgot to mention with the first chapter, this is my first ever fanfic so please review and tell me what you think. Sorry it jumps around a bit, no point adding in unimportant bits. Next chapter, find out what happened with Elle._


	3. Chapter 3

_(After they discover Barty Crouch Jr. is impersonating Moody etc.)_

Dumbledore lead Elle over to an old chair and sat her down. "It's Smith isn't it? Elle Smith?" She nodded. "Okay, well I think it's time we heard what happened to you, if you don't mind. I understand you must be feeling so afraid, but we really need to know what happened," he said.

Elle nodded. "I'm guessing everyone must be very confused. Best if I just tell everyone now."

Harry moved closer. Ever since the Quidditch World Cup he had wanted to know what had happened to her. All that he knew didn't seem to make sense; he needed the other facts to fill in the spaces.

She looked down at her hands before she spoke softly. "As Harry already said, it all started at the Quidditch World Cup, the night the Death Eater's appeared. I was there with some friends from school, we had all been dying to have a holiday over here and the World Cup seemed like the best excuse. Anyway," she said, realising she was straying away from what they needed to hear, "when we realised what was happening, with the Death Eaters and everything, we all just took off running. Didn't have a clue where we were going, but I got separated and I tried to find them but for some reason I ended up in the forest away from the path by myself. I don't really understand it, I wasn't even headed in that direction but for some reason I just turned and walked there, it was like I was in a trans or something. Next thing I knew there was this arm around my neck pulling me even further away. That was when I sort of woke up, I know that sounds crazy but it's the only way I can describe what happened to me. I started struggling and trying to get away." She paused before saying, "It was Barty Crouch Jr."

"That explains why I couldn't see who it was," Harry spoke up. "He was wearing the Invisibility Cloak. I though it was just really dark."

Elle nodded. "I was so scared. I just panicked and screamed. I counted eight people that just ran straight passed me – they didn't even pause for a second. Then I saw Harry and his friends in the distance and I saw them move towards me, but by that time the crowd was getting so much bigger, the Death Eater's getting even closer."

"I'm so sorry I couldn't get to you," Harry said.

"Oh, Harry. It wasn't your fault. There was nothing you could have done. Right after I saw you he pulled the Cloak over me as well to stop others from trying to help me and performed this silencing spell that took away my voice so I couldn't call out. He then sent the Dark Mark up in the sky while still restraining me, gave the wand to his elf and not long after we were both Stunned. He regained conciseness before me. I woke up at the graveyard in this really creepy old house and then that's it. I've been there ever since."

"I bet he was using the Imperious Curse to get you off the path away from everyone else," McGonagall finally spoke. "He probably spotted you earlier, during the match and recognised you."

"Yes, I'll agree with you on that one, Minerva," said Dumbledore. "Do you think anyone is looking for you? I've heard nothing from the Ministry about a missing girl? As far as I know everyone from the World Cup is accounted for, no-one was reported as missing."

"Well I've always lived in foster care back in Australia with Muggles, and because of me being a witch they always knew there was something odd about me, I was constantly moving to different families. Eventually I was sent to a property where a lot of abused and unstable teenagers lived together. Very seedy sort of people there, I hated it. Loved it when term came around and I could be with others like me. The people that run the institute probably thought I ran away, I'd always said I wanted to."

"You don't think you're friends alerted anyone at your school or the Ministry?" asked Dumbledore.

"They probably did but because of my family they most likely guessed I'd gone to join them or something ridiculous like that, but I don't know if they told anyone in the Ministry. If I know them they probably headed home as soon as possible, knowing the Ministry would probably be too busy to listen to a bunch of teenagers."

"Is that why you were caught, because of your parents?" McGonagall asked.

Elle nodded miserably. "I think so. I heard them mentioned once. Apparently you-know-who felt he had a right to use me as a slave as my parents used to be loyal to him. He was hoping once they were back alongside him I would follow in their footsteps and be just as useful. I think he eventually wanted to use me as a spy, play the innocent teenager act, but I wasn't going for it. In the end I was just there for Petigrew to boss around, to make himself feel big." She stopped, and then added softly. "My Father was there tonight. He didn't even look at me."

"Try not to think about it," McGonagall said.

Harry tried to bite back his question but it was blurted out before he could stop it. "Who are your parents?"

Elle opened her mouth to say something but stopped herself. She looked uncomfortable at the topic. "Err…"

"I think it's time to get you both up to the Hospital Wing," Dumbledore spoke up suddenly closing the subject. His eyes met Harry's. They bore into Harry's stopping him from considering asking again later. It was obviously a topic no one wished to talk about. "Harry, I trust you and Elle will be fine escorting yourselves there. We have some business that needs to be finished. Snuffle's can go with you if you wish."

Harry nodded and led Elle out of the office and along the corridor, Sirius trotted along behind them. Neither of them spoke, each of them still shaken from the nights' events. When they were halfway there Harry realised Elle's pace slowing down. She was so weak and probably did little exercise while being prisoner; she had no energy left.

"Oh, umm, do you need a hand?" Harry asked.

"No, I'm fine, I just can't walk as fast as you," she replied, trying to give him a smile but looked more like a flinch.

Harry was about to continue walking but Sirius nudged his hand with his nose. He got the idea Sirius wanted to help her even though she did not ask. He put an arm around her waist and let her body weight lean against him with one of her arms resting on his shoulder.

"Thanks. It's a cute dog you've got there," she commented.

"Yeah, he's great." Harry said simply.

They both turned suddenly when they heard footsteps approaching them from behind. They both relaxed when they realised it was only Dumbledore. "On second thoughts, I think it best if I explain your situation to Madam Pomfrey and the Weasley's, I have a feeling they are waiting for you with Miss Granger.

They eventually got to the infirmary very slowly. Madam Pomfrey nearly had heart attack with their arrival. And Dumbledore had been right; Mrs. Weasley, Bill, Ron and Hermione were all standing there waiting for him. Mrs. Weasley rushed to Harry while Madam Pomfrey hurried to Elle and helped her into a bed.

Dumbledore turned to the Weasley's and said, "Harry has been through a terrible ordeal tonight, as has the poor girl," he gestured to where Madam Pomfrey was removing Elle's tatty, ripped jumper and inspecting the injuries to her arms and face. "I think it would be best if you don't ask either of them, especially Harry, what happened tonight, not until he's ready."

Mrs. Weasley nodded and held him closer. Harry changed into pajamas and opened the screen as Dumbledore moved to the bed next to his to check on Elle.

"I heard there was a girl who appeared out of the maze but I had no idea she would be in this kind of state. What on earth happened to her?" he heard Madam Pomfrey mutter to Dumbledore.

"I'm still not entirely sure. She'll tell us when she's ready," Dumbledore, answered.

"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you, dear?" she asked Elle.

"Umm, I'm probably going to sound like the most stupid person in the world but I'm not sure if I'm fifteen or sixteen. I totally lost track of time while I was there, no-one ever mention any dates or anything."

Dumbledore chuckled softly. "I don't think anyone here thinks you're stupid. Quite the opposite if you ask me, you're being very brave about all this."

"Yes," Mrs. Weasley piped up, "we all think you're so strong considering what you must have been through. I can only imagine."

Elle smiled weakly and said very quietly, "Thank you."

"And the date, if you're still wondering, is the 24th of June," Dumbledore said.

"Huh. Well there you go; my birthday was almost two weeks ago. I guess I'm sixteen after all. Happy birthday to me…" she muttered sadly.

Nobody knew what to say after that and it was followed by a very awkward silence, broken only by Madam Pomfrey saying, "Well I better finish getting you all cleaned up."

Harry couldn't help himself but peek while Madam Pomfrey continued to inspect her injuries, prodding each cut with her wand, some looked quite deep. She was now removing her ruined shoes and was left with bloodstained socks that anyone could see were stuck to the wounds. "Oh my. This is going to hurt, dear." Elle flinched but made no noise as her socks were removed taking the scabs and skin with them, leaving a horrible bloody mess where her feet had blistered and never healed properly. "What a mess. I don't know how she survived like this, Headmaster. I really don't. She must have suffered like this for months."

"Is she going to be okay?" Harry called out.

Madam Pomfrey turned to him. "I'm sure she'll be fine, but it looks like she's been through absolutely everything. It may take her some time to recover. I don't think these scars will ever fade," she said. "You must have suffered so much pain."

"The pain never bothered me too much. It reminded me I was still alive and not simply died and gone to Hell, because it certainly felt like that," muttered Elle.

Sirius moved closer to the bed and had a strange look on his canine face. _Why is he so concerned about this girl?_ Harry wondered.

After making Elle as comfortable as possible Madam Pomfrey moved to Harry's injuries. She had him fixed up in no time. She then handed him a dreamless potion for him to take and gave the same to Elle. They both fell asleep almost instantly.

Elle woke in the early hours of the next morning startled at where she was, and then remembered the events of the night before and relaxed a little. She could hear yelling, that's what had woken her up as well Harry's friends muttering amongst themselves about the noise.

The door burst open suddenly and the Minister for Magic strode in followed by two teachers, one of them McGonagall the other was a tall greasy haired man. The Minister went straight to the two beds occupied at the end of the hospital wing. Elle sat up suddenly wishing that the screens had been closed around her bed when she had fallen asleep. He instantly demanded where Dumbledore was. Before anyone could answer him the Headmaster had arrived to defuse the situation.

From what Elle could pick up from the argument the Minister had allowed a Dementor to enter Hogwarts and perform the kiss on Barty Crouch Jr. This was a problem, as they now could not question him about the Dark Lord and get the answers they needed. Everyone seemed outraged at the Minister's decision. Secretly Elle was glad. She had no fear of him ever coming to find her. She knew there were many others you-know-who could send, but because he had gotten her in the first place and nearly had her again only a few hours ago she would always fear him, but no more.

The Minister was refusing to believe Lord Voldermort was back; the voices of two teenagers were simply not enough proof for him. He glared at Elle as he voiced his opinions of them. Suddenly one of the teachers came forward, rolled up his sleeve and thrust his arm under the Minister's face showing him his Dark Mark and explained that they were only visible when the Dark Lord himself touched the mark of another Death Eater. Elle gasped quietly when she spotted the mark. She wished she hadn't made a sound as the teacher turned and gave her a hard stare.

The argument continued but the Minister could see he was losing. Eventually he walked up to Harry's bed and gave him his winnings from the Tournament then stormed out of the infirmary. Dumbledore then got to work organising everybody, asking if he had everyone backing him. Elle was confused. Backing him for what? He sent both Madam Pomfrey and McGonagall out to message and find certain people. One of the red haired Weasley friends of Harry's left to go send an owl to another person. Dumbledore then turned to face everyone that was left.

"Right, I think it's time we had some honesty among ourselves. If we're all in this together we need to trust each other," he said. Elle had no idea what he meant. "Alright, Sirius. I think it's time you showed yourself to everyone." He spoke directly to the dog and moved to stand beside Elle. The dog simply stared at him for a moment. Dumbledore nodded at it for encouragement and Elle swore she saw it sigh. Then to her surprise it transformed into a human right before their eyes. But not just any human–

"Sirius Black!" Mrs. Weasley shrieked.

"What? No!" Elle panicked and tried to leap out of bed but Dumbledore gently placed his hands on her shoulders making her stay put. "Calm yourself, Molly," he called to Mrs. Weasley while still holding Elle who was still struggling madly. It didn't feel right fighting against an elderly man but this wasn't right. What kind of a school had Death Eaters for teachers, psychotic murderers pretending to be cute, fluffy pets, and an old frail Headmaster who was freakishly strong?

"What is he doing here?" The oily haired teacher asked angrily.

"I trust him, Severus. And I want you all to trust him. Sirius is an innocent man," Dumbledore said. "He wouldn't be here if he was any threat to you," he added to Elle, who very reluctantly stopped fighting against him. She eyed Sirius suspiciously trying to hide her fear. Even at her school in Australia they had all been warned about him.

"Elle," Harry said leaning towards her bed. "I trust him, he really is a good person; he was just wrongly accused."

"I know you're frightened, but I'm hoping one day you will trust me, we are family after all," Sirius said softly to her.

"What?" asked Harry shocked.

"Harry," his Headmaster warned.

"My family has never treated me right, so excuse me if I don't trust you," Elle replied.

" I understand," Sirius sympathised.

"Well, now that's more or less settled…" Dumbledore continued to send off and organise everyone. Elle listened quietly having no idea who these people were that were mentioned. She had a strange sensation flow through her body. For the first time in nearly a year, she felt safe.

When she woke up the next morning she again had to remember where she was. She glanced over at the bed next to hers and could see Harry about to leave, his friends no longer with him.

"Harry?" she called surprised to find her voice quite hoarse.

He jumped slightly and whipped around. "Oh, Elle. Morning."

"Hey, you leaving?"

"Yeah, just about to," he replied.

"So it wasn't a dream then?" she asked glumly.

"I wish it was. But you got rescued; you're no longer there. This should be a good thing." Harry said a little baffled.

"I know, and I'm very happy and grateful that I'm now safe, it's just… the boy," she paused, "Cedric. He really did die then?"

Harry sighed. "Yeah he did. His parents came while you were sleeping. Must be hard for them."

"I bet they couldn't stand the sight of me," Elle said.

"Well I'm not going to deny Mr. Diggory gave you quite a nasty stare but his mother didn't seem to think you had anything to do with it."

She looked down sadly. "I'm sorry, I know I sound silly but I've never seen anyone die before. I've never seen a dead body."

He moved closer to her and sat at the end of her bed. "Me neither. Although, I hear my parents last words every time I'm near a Dementor as well as Voldermort's laughter."

Elle flinched at the name. "Don't!" It was the first time Harry had heard her voice harsh.

"Sorry. You're really scared of him, huh?"

"You have no idea. I mean the whole time I was there he was only this, thing! I don't know what you'd call him, but that was enough to scare me more than anything. Last night was the worst night of my life, I don't think I've been more terrified."

"Well, I'd have to say it's in my worst five," Harry joked thinking over everything that has happened to him over the lat few years."

Elle giggled slightly and Harry laughed with her. "Thank you, Harry. For everything."

Unsure of what to say Harry just smiled at her. "Well I better be going. Bye, Elle. I hope to see you again."

"Me too. Bye, Harry." She watched him leave the Infirmary and suddenly she felt very alone and isolated. She had no idea what was going to happen to her and where she would go next. She asked Madam Pomfrey when she came to check on her and give her a huge amount of food but she had no answers for her. "Dumbledore will be organising something right now if I know him. You have nothing to worry about. Just relax and eat. You're so skinny, you need to get some food into you," she told Elle.

She tried to relax but it was just impossible, she had too many thoughts and worries buzzing through her mind. She had picked through the food but ate little. She wasn't used to being able to eat huge amounts so she couldn't stomach much, but what she ate she was grateful for. Later she was handed some clothes from the lost property and was shown where she could have a wash. It had been so long since she had felt clean. The clothes she had been given were too big; baggy jeans, an old t-shirt and a knitted maroon jumper. It wasn't that glamorous but it was certainly better than what she had been wearing.

Throughout the day she noticed a lot of students coming into the hospital wing for some really trivial things. Hang nails, grazed knees, stomachaches and potions to get rid of the world's tinniest pimple, so small it couldn't be seen. Elle soon figured it out that this was a way for them to get a glimpse at the girl who mysteriously appeared out of the maze with Harry and his dead classmate. She hated it. She felt like she was at a zoo only she was on the wrong side of the glass, and her viewers did not admire her but judged her instead.

Mid afternoon there was two students – twins – that came in that Elle could see were finally a proper injury. One of them was supporting a badly burnt hand, which he wrapped in what looked like a torn bed sheet. It surprised her to see them laughing as if it were some joke, even though it was clearly painful for him. Both of them were tall with red hair and freckles. They looked like the family that had stayed with Harry. She wondered if they were related.

"Weasley!" Madam Pomfrey scowled. Yep, they were. "Why is it always you two?"

"We're just making sure you don't get too bored, I mean there's only so much a school matron can do. We're just filling up you're day a bit," the uninjured twin answered.

"What on earth were you two doing?" she asked as she gently unwrapped the sheet.

"Oh, it was just a… err… mishap," the injured one said.

"And what sort of mishap?"

"Just the normal everyday mishap that occurs while we were both trying to study," the injured one said.

"Then why is it that I have no other issues with any other students?" she asked playing along.

"Well they're just not trying hard enough," the uninjured one answered.

"I'm just going to give up. I'm never going to get to the bottom of it with you two. Just stay here and I'll go get some ointment to put on that," said Madam Pomfrey.

"After all this," the injured one muttered holding up his blistering wound, "mum better not find them and get rid of them all again."

"Well fingers crossed, eh. I'm just glad it was you getting hurt for once," the other chuckled and they continued to joke and laugh.

Elle sighed as she listened. She remembered their mother from last night. She had sympathised with Elle, and comforted Harry when he needed it. Right after everyone had left the hospital wing last night she had heard Harry sobbing quietly. She had glanced a look at him and saw his friends' mother holding him so lovingly, just as a mother should. Elle couldn't ignore the jealousy. She wished she had a motherly figure to hug her and tell her everything was going to be okay. But she didn't. Instead she had to hear it being muttered to someone else. Her eyes prickled with tears at the memory. She desperately just wanted a hug. The best she had had was Madam Pomfrey pat her head after she had cleaned her wounds.

She brought her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs and blinked to try and hold back the tears. She looked up at the ceiling and sniffed. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the twins turn and look in her direction. As quick as she could she turned her face towards the door away from their eyes and preyed no one else would come in and see the tears sliding down her cheeks. She could hear movement at the end of the infirmary. _Please don't come over. Just stay there, _she thought.

"Okay, Mr. Weasley, whichever one you are, let's have a look at that, huh?" She heard Madam Pomfrey say. She relaxed slightly thinking the matron entering the room again was the movement she'd heard, but she nearly died of embarrassment when she felt the weight of someone sit down on the end of her bed.

"Hey, there," came a voice. She hurriedly whipped the tears from her face and rested her arms on her knees. _Why did the curtains around her bed have to be open?_ Slowly she turned her head to look at him. "I'm a friend of Harry Potter's, his best mates brother." He continued. Elle didn't know what to say so she continued to stare. "I'm George," he said smiling and holding out his hand.

"Elle," she muttered quietly, the corner of her mouth curving slightly but she did not take his hand.

"I remember you from the World Cup." She frowned at him confused. "You tripped over a tent peg and took my brother Ron down with you."

Her brow crinkled at the memory. "That's right, I did too. Wow, that seems so long ago. You must have been one of them standing behind him laughing uncontrollably."

George laughed. "Yep, that sounds like us." They were then silent for a moment. "So… How you feeling?" he asked.

She looked down at her beaten hands and her bandaged wrists from the rope burn. "I'll live," she answered simply. She wasn't sure if he was going to reply or not but his twin suddenly appeared next to him, his hand bandaged and smelling of the vile scented ointment used for his burn but otherwise okay.

"Hello," he said cheerfully. "I'm Fred, the better half."

"Hi, I'm Elle," she said feeling slightly uncomfortable. At leased they were trying to be friendly and weren't simply gawking at her like the rest of the school, but it didn't mean they weren't judging her.

"Harry mentioned a bit about you to us, sounds like you've been through a fair bit," he said moving to sit next to his twin.

"Yeah. I'll get over it." Her eyes prickled again and she looked towards the corner of the bed next to hers not wanting them to see her eyes.

"It'll be alright, Dumbledore will make sure everything is sorted out," he said gently placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Yep." She didn't cry and she was glad she had fought back the tears. There was nothing worse than crying in front of people, especially people she didn't know.

"You're a tough cookie," he said. She looked at him puzzled, as did his twin.

"Tough cookie?" George asked.

"Yeah. I heard it a while ago and I've been looking for an excuse to say it."

"Muggle saying?" George asked.

"Yeah."

"Heard it from dad?"

"Sure did."

"Well you probably got it wrong. Otherwise Muggles really are strange."

Fred started laughing and George joined in. Elle couldn't help but crack a smile.

"Well, we better leave you to get some rest. I'm sure we'll see each other again, especially with Dumbledore sorting everything out for you," said Fred when he'd stopped laughing.

Elle nodded, not quite sure what he meant.

"Bye, Elle," George said getting up with Fred.

"Bye," she said.

Dumbledore arrived later near dinner she guessed not quite sure of the time. "How are you doing today?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she said smiling meekly at him.

He smiled and nodded. "Well I'm not sure if you are wanting to go back to your home in Australia or not, but I've contacted some of your family here. Not your parents," he said suddenly seeing her panic stricken face, "but your aunt and uncle as well as your cousin. They are lovely people and are more than willing to have you live with them. They don't have anything to do with your parents or the rest of your family, with the exception of Sirius, but as you saw last night, he's quite harmless. And your cousin works at the Ministry and has heard about what has happened, and don't worry, she does not agree with the Minister. She knows you are innocent. And, if you decide you would like to stay and live with them you are more than welcome to attend Hogwarts to finish your education. Although, you will have to drop down a year as you missed your fifth year."

Elle couldn't believe her ears. "Are you serious? I mean, are you sure? Do they– Should I– I don't–" Dumbledore laughed and held up his hands to slow her down. "Sorry, it's just. I don't know what to say. I really don't have to go back to that horrid place?"

"Not if you don't want to." Elle laughed excitedly. "I'm guessing you would like to stay here then?" he asked.

"Yes. As long as they don't mind," she said.

"I'm sure they will be over the moon about your decision."

"Great!"

"Now, lets get you out of bed and organise everything. I assume you'll want you're belongings from Australia sent over?"

"Yeah. Although I may have to go shopping to buy new clothes, ones that fit," she said looking down at the oversized maroon jumper she wore.

"Yes, I have to say your attire doesn't quite suit you. I have a feeling the boy who owns that jumper lost it on purpose, can't understand why," Dumbledore said with an amused expression on his face. Elle guessed it must an inside joke or something as she had no idea what he was going on about.

Not long after she stood in his office about to leave for her Aunt and Uncles home. They had organised everything for her to finish her schooling at Hogwarts nest year and Dumbledore helped her tie up all the loose ends with moving her whole life halfway around the world. He seemed to be quite enjoying himself.

"Now," he said, "there's just one thing left." Baffled that there could be anything left to do she watched as he reached into his robes and produced a small, thin polished wooden box. He handed it to her.

"Happy belated birthday," he said tenderly.

Very gently she opened the box to find a new sleek wand. "Oh!" she breathed.

"Eleven inches long, rosewood containing the tail hair of a stunning female unicorn, as I was told by Mr. Olivander. The same as the wand that was taken from you, am I correct?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes it is, I– It's– How did you know?" she asked moving a shaking hand to touch the smooth surface of it.

"Well now, that's my secret. I hope it helps you to produce some remarkable magic. I know it's in you."

She looked up at him appreciatively. "Thank you," she whispered, "so very much!"

Dumbledore shook his head at her. "Think nothing of it." Elle couldn't believe the kindness of this man. "Let's get you to your new home."

Elle followed him astonished at how her luck had turned around. Only days ago she believed she was living in Hell and now everything in her life was finally falling into place. Maybe there was someone up there, he only just thought to cut her some slack. She nearly giggled at the thought. Hopefully soon she would be able to laugh again.

(So what do you think? Do you want me to continue and let out her secret family? Please review! Like I said before, this is my first attempt and I would like to know what everyone thinks of it).


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Again I'm sorry the chapters are all over the place, hopefully now they are starting to come together a bit more smoothly. Hopefully this chapter isn't too boring… I enjoyed writing it anyway.**

**A big thanks to my good buddy TheSnapist to chercherlecirque for your kind words and advice. I need all the help I can get and every little bit will hopefully help me improve. So please, please everyone review!**

Harry walked through the barrier from platform nine and three quarters back to the Muggle world. He defiantly wasn't looking forward to summer. He was still feeling quite depressed about the Third Task and Cedric's death. He knew it was going to take some time before he would feel better, and staying with the Dursley's certainly wasn't going to help his mood.

He could see Mr. and Mrs. Weasley standing together waiting for them with big smiles on their faces, and just behind them the Dursley's looking awkward as always. This was going to one terrible summer with them again. He sighed and began walking towards Mr. and Mrs. Weasley with Hermione and the Weasley's, not wanting to say goodbye and face the Dursley's at that moment.

"Harry!" he heard voice yell over the crowd.

He turned to face where the voice had come from. He couldn't believe his eyes. Elle came running through the crowd straight towards him. She looked a lot better than when he had last seen her. Her bones, although still visible, were no longer sharp looking showing signs of her putting weight back on, not very much as it was only a little over a week since the Third Task but it was a start at least. Her body still lacked the curves and shape she had had the day he had first seen her. Her skin was no longer ghostly pale making her look much more healthier. The injuries to her arms that he could see were not nearly as noticeable, slowly fading to pale scars, he guessed she was taking some potion to help make them fade. Her hair was cut short again and he wondered if it had something to do with the big knot mass that looked impossible to brush through. Her face was bright and happy with her cheeks pink again and her beautiful eyes were shining with excitement – a sight Harry thought he would never see again. He had forgotten how beautiful she had been; quite plain but there was something about her that made her stand out. He noticed that one of the twins was watching her intently.

When she finally reached him she threw her arms around his neck. Harry couldn't ignore how much happier he felt at seeing her well again and he hugged her tightly back, trying to ignore the sick feeling of bone and skin with little meat between. He could see the Dursley's staring at him with wide eyes.

"Thank you so much, Harry," she whispered in his ear.

"You already thanked me," he answered.

She pulled away from him and smiled. "Yes I know I did but I wanted to thank you again, properly. Last time we saw each other we were both rather… err… how should I put it, out of it? Still trying to make sense over what had happened I guess. And everything seams to have straightened out for me which is another reason why I wanted to thank you."

Harry looked at her confused.

"Dumbledore found my aunt, uncle and my cousin. I'm finally living with my real family. A family that actually wants me to live with them," she said with a small giggle.

Harry noticed a young woman, in her early twenties, Harry estimated, with bright bubble-gum pink hair also cut short, though hers more spikier than Elle's which looked rather flat in comparison. She was wearing a Weird Sister's t-shirt, tattered jeans and big black boots. She had a warm genuine smile spread across her face making her look friendly, even with her grungy style. Elle's cousin he guessed.

"That's great, Elle. I'm glad to see you happy again," he said.

"Thanks. And Dumbledore's accepted me into Hogwarts next year," she exclaimed. "I don't have to go back to that horrible institute. I can stay here."

"Oh, Elle! That's fantastic!" he said excitedly. He surprised himself at how his mood had turned around, almost opposite at how he felt when he had gotten off the train. He hugged her again.

"Yeah. So that's why I'm here. I wanted to say thank you; again. If it wasn't for you I would still be... there. Or worse." Harry shuddered at the thought of what would have happened to her if he had left her. "You saved my life and I will always be grateful. I know that sounds beyond corny but it's true. I can't thank you enough," she said.

Harry smiled. "Don't worry about it. I'm just happy to see you full of life again. I honestly didn't think I'd ever see you like this again. Last time I saw you, you were so... empty," he said looking at her. He could see the amount of weight she needed to gain as she was wearing a shirt that was too big for her, obviously one she had owned back in Australia as it had a Muggle rock band on it, one that Harry had actually heard of though he wasn't actually a fan of their music.

"Yes, I'm feeling a lot better." He knew she meant emotionally as well as physically. "Though I don't look it quite yet. I've had many elderly witches give me harsh stares thinking I'm a stupid teenager with a ridiculous eating disorder or something," she laughed. "If only they knew, eh? I kind of wish some of the girls from Australia who used to tease me about being fat could see me now." She paused. "But you don't look any better. I don't want to see you like this, especially when I'm so happy at the moment. Is there anything I can do?"

"Don't worry about me, I can look after myself. I'm just dreading summer with the Dursley's," he gestured to where the Dursley's stood still waiting. Uncle Vernon looked agitated at having to wait, Aunt Petunia looking very embarrassed at the people standing around them, and Dudley was looking at Harry in disbelief, probably thinking that Elle was Harry's girlfriend. He had to hold back a laugh.

Elle looked over to the Dursley's. "Gee, they look like a barrel of laughs."

"You have no idea," Harry sighed.

"I'll try and spring ya," Elle giggled.

Harry laughed. "I think Hermione and the Weasley's have been trying that for years."

"Damn. Well you never know, maybe I'll have a better crack at it."

Harry smiled. He didn't want to get his hopes up, he knew his chances were very slim, but with Elle he couldn't help but feel happy. Her personality was so bright and bubbly it seemed to wear off onto everyone near her. He wondered if her family was like her at all. Her cousin had now moved towards the Weasley's and was talking to Mr. Weasley with a lot of energy, not only was she gesturing with her hands but her whole body. Harry couldn't help smiling. Yes, her cousin at least seemed very alike, just by her enthusiasm.

"C'mon, you'd better say your goodbyes before Mrs. Weasley comes and crash tackles you. I think she's very anxious to see if you're okay," Elle said picking up Hedwig's cage.

Harry glanced over to the Weasley's again. Mrs. Weasley stood with Ginny held close to her side looking at over at him with an uneasy look upon face. She was clearly very worried. Harry sighed and grabbed his truck dragging it over to meet the others.

"Oh, Harry dear!" Mrs. Weasley wailed as she threw her arms around Harry with a certain amount of energy he had never seen from her. It was almost fierce. He guessed it was from all the worry and stress she was certain to be suffering.

"I'm fine, Mrs. Weasley," he said trying to reassure her.

She pulled away but still held him by his arms. "I was so worried about you. I don't ever want to see you so miserable again." She yanked him into another bone crushing hug.

"I'm glad to see you're okay, Harry," Mr. Weasley clapped him on the back when Mrs. Weasley finally let go of him. Harry just smiled. He didn't know what to say. He didn't want them to know how much it had affected him, how upset he still was.

Harry said his goodbye's receiving more hugs from the girls, got a surprise when Hermione kissed him gently on the cheek, Ron and Mr. Weasley shook his hand and slapped him on his shoulder while the twins made kissing noises at him. Harry chuckled. At least they could still make him laugh.

Elle also said her goodbyes. Ginny, Hermione and Mrs. Weasley hugged her warmly surprising Harry. He would never understand women; none of them knew her at all well and here they were hugging as if they had known each other for years. He was sure this was the first time Ginny had even met Elle, yet neither of them even hesitated before reaching for one another.

"You're looking so much better, dear. But I want to see you a lot less skinny next time I see you. You're still looking very underweight," Mrs. Weasley fussed.

Elle laughed and promised she would as she politely shook Mr. Weasley's hand. She gave Ron an awkward hug – he held his arms very stiffly and simply patting her lightly on the back, still unsure about her – before she moved to the twins. She reached for George first who hesitated.

"I'm not going to bite you," she giggled as she pulled him to her.

"I'm sure he's had worse things try and bite him," Fred joked as she let go of George and moved to him.

Elle looked at them puzzled, but Harry was quite sure he was referring to some of the ingredients they use for their sweets, and how they acquired them.

Harry was pleased that the Weasley's were being so welcoming and supportive towards her. They seemed to understand what she had suffered and he was sure they were never going to forget what she had looked like when they saw her arrive back at the maze with him. She needed people to believe her and he was sure the Weasley's were going to stand behind her fully.

He was feeling so much better and didn't want this moment to end, he wanted to hold onto it, even for just a bit longer. He knew as soon as he got back to the Dursley's all his happiness would disappear. But he had to go back and he slowly made his way over. He was shocked when Elle followed him still carrying Hedwig in her cage.

Uncle Vernon was already glaring at him when he got to them. Not a good start to summer. Elle placed Hedwig down on Harry's trunk staring at the Dursley's with shock at how quickly they showed their hatred to their only nephew.

"Umm, well I guess I'll see you soon, I hope," she turned and smiled at Harry.

"Yeah, I look forward to it," he replied.

She pulled him into another hug. Harry surprised himself at how tightly he held her, not wanting to let her go. He didn't have any feelings for her romantically, but she knew exactly what he was going through, and her kind, bubbly nature made Harry feel a lot better about himself.

"This is so funny. A few weeks ago I wanted nothing more than a hug from someone and today I've got nothing but hugs," she giggled into his ear. She softly kissed his cheek and said; "I guess I'll see you when I'm looking at ya."

"Yeah, I'll see you later," Harry replied glumly.

"Bye Mr. and Mrs. Dursley," she said waving to the Dursley's that looked like they'd just been slapped in the face at the idea of one of Harry's people speaking to them in public. Harry smiled to himself and he knew it would be the last one for a while.


	5. Chapter 5

It was havoc at Grimmald Place, people always coming and going and it was only the beginning. Elle had been staying there for the last few days helping the Order to clean it up, but to also allow her time to get to know and trust Sirius as she was still a bit unsure of him. But she soon learnt he was no threat and enjoyed mucking around with him. He had a childish side to him that reminded her of some of the boys she had lived with at the institute. One minute he would be all serious and down to business pushing her out of the kitchen to discuss things with the Order, and then the next moment he would be tackling her or ruffling her hair with this boyish cheeky grin on his face. It was almost like something would just click in his mind and all of a sudden he had this craziness to him.

Tonight they were expecting the Weasley's to arrive and stay to help with the house as well as have some more Order member's close by. Hermione was to arrive a few days after. Elle still wasn't sure what was happening with Harry, she knew he would eventually be coming to stay with them but she wasn't sure when or how he would get here, but they were all under strict instructions not to tell Harry anything about what was happening.

Both her and Sirius were in the kitchen when they heard the Weasley's arrive. Tonks had been sitting with them while they cooked but she jumped to her feet when she heard the Weasley's to go and greet them. Elle could hear Kinsley and Lupin discussing things quietly in the hallway with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Bill but the kids made their way straight to the kitchen.

"Ah, welcome, welcome," Sirius greeted them warmly. "I've made a lovely Shepard's Pie for dinner, my speciality, so I hope you're hungry."

"Umm, excuse me, but I think I remember making it," Elle spoke up.

"No, we both did. Team work!" He clapped her on the back roughly.

"Oh, okay, was that what that was?" Elle said as he turned his back to her facing the Weasley's again. She then mouthed to them, "I did all the work," while pointing to herself. "Him," she pointed to Sirius, "Nothing!" she gestured the same thing she mouthed with her hands.

The twins both cracked a smile and Ginny let out a small giggle. Sirius followed their eyes back to Elle who immediately straightened up and grinned at him.

"I gotta watch you," he growled playfully ruffling her hair. "Taking credit for my masterpiece."

Elle pretended to be shocked and mouthed, "What?!"

"Oh, it's good to see the both of you getting along," Mrs. Weasley said entering the room before she sniffed the air. "Is that dinner?" she asked nervously.

"Sure is. Made it myself," Sirius said proudly.

"No, I–" But Elle couldn't finish what she was going to say as Sirius quickly covered her mouth so all they could hear was, "Mmm, mmmmm mmmn mmmmm!"

"Well now that I'm here I think I can make the meals for everyone," Mrs. Weasley said.

"On second thoughts I think it was Elle who cooked," Sirius said removing his hand.

"Actually, I was just the helper. Besides, I'm young; I'm still allowed to make mistakes when I cook. Unlike you whose had how many years to learn how to cook properly?" Elle teased.

"Oi! Are you calling me old?"

"Would I do that?" She looked up at him innocently.

Dinner went well, even with Mrs. Weasley's uncertainty of the meal, it didn't taste too bad. Elle happily conversed with the Weasley kids although Ron said very little. She soon learned that the twins were both pranksters and it didn't take long before they both started to tease her, though she didn't really care, it made her laugh.

Just through dinner they had managed to mock her over her height, her accent, and her cooking; though she did try to put the blame on Sirius for that one. Plus she had accidentally let slip that she still had some of her Muggle belongings with her. This had caught Mr. Weasley's interest whom immediately demanded her attention so she could explain to him how exactly her hair dryer worked. Though her explanation was short ("umm, you just plug it in and turn it on…"), she found it difficult to block out the twins laughter. She made the mistake of telling Mr. Weasley that plugs were different in Australia compared to the English one's.

"Really?" he said with his face lighting up with excitement, he was practically bouncing of his chair as he continued his never-ending round of questions.

"Wow, Elle. I never knew plugs could be so interesting!" said one of the twins sarcastically.

"Yes, please tell me more," the other joined in.

Mr. Weasley frowned at his son's jokes while Elle hid her face in her hands. "Oh, my God. It's bad enough with Sirius and now I'm going to have you two making fun of me as well. That's not fair, you're going to gang up on me, what did I ever do?" Elle said giggling with Ginny. Within a few moments of meeting Ginny properly she had liked her almost instantly.

"Well you kinda bring it upon yourself," laughed one of the twins; Fred she thought it was.

"What do you mean? 'Cause I'm an easy target?"

"Got it in one," replied the other twin whom she was guessing was George.

"Oh, great!" she said laughing again.

"Okay, okay, come on, George. I think we should tone it down a bit; after all we only arrived here just over an hour ago," said Fred as he watched his mother leave the room with his dad, Kinsley and Lupin. "I think we should give her time to get to know our sense of humour so we don't offend her or anything."

"I couldn't agree more, Fred," replied George grinning widely. There was something cagey in the looks they were giving each other as they spoke.

Elle looked from one twin to the other suspiciously. "What… should I be worried?"

"No, no. We just want to offer you a truce. Here, have the last of my sweets that I was saving, to show that we can be nice," said Fred offering her a bag of brightly wrapped sweets.

She stared at Fred right in the eye. "Do you really think I'm that stupid?"

The twins both looked at each other raising an eyebrow and said in unison, "Well–"

"It was a rhetorical question," she cut them off trying to cover her smile. "What's in them?"

"I think you should be more worried about what they do to you," Ginny piped up.

"What do they do to you?"

"Here, try one. I promise you they're fine. Well, to an extent," said Fred.

"Make me," Elle replied. Whoops!

After that it became a game between the twins to get her to eat one. One would try and hold her while the other would attempt and place the sweet in her mouth. Elle realised she hadn't giggled this much for ages as she dodged them trying her hardest to hide behind someone hoping they would stick up for her. She had no luck with Tonk's who simply stepped aside enjoying the spectacle too much to put a stop to it; she had even worse luck with Sirius who, to her horror, grabbed her arms and cried, "I got her!" She was saved when Mrs. Weasley re-entered the room and the twins both quickly hid the sweets, hoping their mother wouldn't spot them and destroy them again.

"What's going on in here?" she demanded glaring at her son's.

"They–" Elle began to say but stopped herself when she saw Fred and George's pleading looks. She guessed Mrs. Weasley didn't know about the sweets and quickly said to cover up for them, "They were chasing me because I thought it would be funny to pull Fred's chair out from under him when he leant forward for seconds, you know payback for them teasing me before." She giggled hoping it sounded believable even though she knew it was beyond lame. She hadn't done that since she was ten and even then she knew it was a cheap shot.

"Oh, ok then," Mrs. Weasley said indifferently; obviously used to her sons' childish behaviour.

When the kids left the kitchen later to head upstairs she noticed Fred leaning closer to her and whispered, "Thanks. We owe you one." George was next to him and smiled in agreement.

"No problem," she replied. "I'll let you know when I need the favour."

Elle was overjoyed she was now not the only person pushed out of the kitchen when the Order's meeting were about to begin. It had been very lonely when it was just her all by herself and the meetings always seemed to drag on, though now they didn't seem as long anymore. They would usually all squish into someone's bedroom chatting or stand out in the hallway above the stairs and try out Fred and George's Extendable Ears.

Hermione arrived two days after the Weasley's had which seemed to lighten Ron's mood. At first she had frowned upon the Extendable Ears but soon her curiosity got the better of her. When they weren't eavesdropping or cleaning both her and Ron would separate themselves from the others and disappeared into Ron's room. Fred and George loved to joke that there was something going on between them.

"Ron's too hopeless when it comes to girls," said Fred one afternoon. "Besides, Hermione's hardly out-going is she? I doubt she'd start something."

"That's true," George agreed. "And for someone as intelligent as her it would be pretty stupid of her to go for someone like Ron."

"Wonder what they're doing then?" Fred mused.

"Is it that hard to believe that two friends can be opposite sexes?" Elle asked them. "I mean look at us. I'm always in your room talking with you guys, maybe they're thinking the same thing."

"No way, you're hardly a girl. You're a– an Elle," said Fred. "I'm yet to see a girly side to you."

"And that's probably exactly how Ron sees Hermione. To him she's not a girl she's a – what was the phrase you used? Oh yeah, she's a Hermione," said Elle making her point.

"You see, you're too much of a smart-ass to be a girl," Fred laughed.

"And off you go with the teasing again," Elle smiled.

"What do you expect, it's our second nature," George joined in.

Elle opened her mouth to reply with a witty response but was over spoken by Mrs. Weasley yelling at them to get to bed from downstairs.

"Lucky, saved by your mother," Elle said as she got to her feet.

"Ooo! We're so scared, aren't we, George?" said Fred.

"Terrified. I don't know how I'm going to sleep tonight," George agreed.

Elle was still giggling as she left the room and headed towards the bedroom she shared with Hermione and Ginny. She still couldn't believe how much she was enjoying life now. She still thought at times she was simply going to wake up from an amazing dream to find herself living in hell again but for the moment she was happy and she didn't care if it was real or not, she wanted to enjoy as much of it as she could.

**A:N/ Yay, another chapter up! Sorry it's taking me so long to upload chapters but I'm back at college. Don't give up on me though, I'm writing heaps in my spare time and I'll be able to post when I come back for the holidays or if I come home for weekends. Hope you're enjoying it, please tell me what you think or if something needs fixing or if something seems a bit odd by reviewing, it's the only way I'll get better and be able to keep the story interesting, though I've got heaps of ideas for upcoming chapters **


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